Friday, April 28, 2017

CONDUCTOR WINNERS: orchestra, all divisions, 2016-17

The
American Prize is honored to announce the winners, runners-up and honorable mentions of The American Prize in Conducting—orchestra—in the professional, college/university, community and youth/school divisions, 2016-17.
Congratulations!

All applicants finalist or higher
receive written evaluations from a member of The American Prize judging
panel.

Complete listings of finalists and semi-finalists in The American Prize competitions may be found elsewhere on this blog. Please use the chronological tool in the right-hand column to find specific results.

Recognized by the Denton-Record Chronicle as one of “2012’s Most Fascinating People,” the career of conductor Jason Lim is on the rise. Lim was born in Penang, Malaysia and began his formal training in viola performance when he won a scholarship to study at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts with Alice Waten. He commenced his studies at the Canberra (Australia) School of Music, and completed his bachelor’s degree with honors at the Australian Institute of Music in Sydney. Jason received his Masters degree in orchestral conducting from the University of North Texas.

Known for his fine technique in performances, Jason began his conducting studies in Australia: first as an apprentice with the Canberra Youth Orchestra, and later as an Assistant Conductor with the Ku Ring Gai Philharmonic Orchestra in Sydney, a position that was awarded in conjunction with the New South Wales Ministry of Arts Conducting Prize. Most recently, Mr. Lim has been of awards from the American Prize Competition: the 2011 Young Conductor Citation Award, third prize in the 2013 Conducting Competition and most recently second prize in the 2015 and 2014 American Prize Competition for professional conductors. In 2013 Jason made his European conducting debut with the Academic State Concert Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine in Kiev and in 2014 appeared as guest conductor with the Zabrze Philharmonic Orchestra in Poland and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Currently, Jason is the Artistic Director and conductor of the Odysseus Chamber Orchestra, a group he founded in 2012. In 2014 the orchestra was awarded second prize in the Professional Orchestra division of the American Prize Competition and third prize in 2015. Thanks to Jason’s commitment to education, the group pioneered a unique mentorship program that gives talented high school students the opportunity to perform side-by-side with professional musicians. www.jasonlim-conductor.comhttp://jasonlim-conductor.wix.com/jason

2nd Place:Genevieve Leclair Boston Ballet Orchestra Boston MA

Genevieve Leclair

Canadian conductor Geneviève Leclair was appointed Music Director of Parkway Concert Orchestra in 2013 and Assistant Professor at Berklee College of Music in 2016. Equally at home in the symphony, ballet and opera worlds, she was Assistant Conductor for Boston Ballet from 2010 to 2016, where she conducted main stage productions on a regular basis. In 2016, she returned to the company as Guest Conductor and made her debut with The National Ballet of Canada.She had the honour of being the recipient of the 2010 Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation Award in orchestral conducting.

In recent years, Ms. Leclair has had the opportunity to guest conduct various orchestras both in Canada and the United States, including Orchestre symphonique du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean, McGill Chamber Orchestra, Symphony New Hampshire, Syracuse University Symphony Orchestra and New England Conservatory Chamber and Youth Philharmonic Orchestras. Her performances have been hailed as “impeccable” (Boston Phoenix), “ravishing” and of “exemplary pacing and reading” (Hugh Fraser) while her conducting style is praised for its “verve and precision”, “confident dynamics and tempos, crisp rhythms, and crystalline phrasing creat[ing] powerful forward momentum” (Carla DeFord).

Paul Mauffray began his music studies at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts and Louisiana State University. He won 2nd Prize in the Bartok Conducting Competition and has 20 years professional conducting experience with European orchestras and operas in Prague, Brno, Bratislava, Lyon, Salzburg, St. Petersburg, and Vienna. After studies in Germany and the Czech Republic, he earned his master's degree in conducting at Indiana University where he was engaged as Associate Instructor. He conducted at the Bucharest National Opera, Slovak National Opera, and appeared frequently as conductor with violin-soloist Tomas Vinklat from the Vienna Philharmonic. Mauffray has been a frequent guest conductor with the Hradec Kralove Philharmonic, Janacek Philharmonic, Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic, and Schoenbrunn Palace Orchestra in Vienna. In 2016 he recorded the opera “The Scarlet Letter” and conducted performances of “Rusalka” at the Mariinsky Theatre. He is currently reconstructing the 1894 opera "Tabasco" by George W. Chadwick. www.paulmauffray.com

Walter Morales is the Music Director of the Edgewood Symphony Orchestra. His previous positions include Music Director of Undercroft Opera, Music Director of the Carnegie Mellon University Contemporary Ensemble, Head of Music of Opera Theater of Pittsburgh, Principal Guest Conductor of the Pittsburgh Philharmonic, Assistant Director of Orchestral Studies at Carnegie Mellon University and Assistant Conductor of the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic. He has been a guest conductor with the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica, Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra, Butler County Symphony Orchestra, McKeesport Symphony Orchestra, University of Costa Rica Symphony Orchestra, University of Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Duquesne University Opera & Orchestra, Pittsburgh Youth Chamber Orchestra and Rutgers Chamber Orchestra. He has also served as cover conductor for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. For more information please visit: www.waltermoralesmusic.com

The American Prize in Conducting—orchestra, 2016-17, college/university division:

The American Prize winner:Genevieve Leclair Syracuse University Symphony Syracuse NY

Genevieve Leclair

Canadian conductor Geneviève Leclair was appointed Music Director of
Parkway Concert Orchestra in 2013 and Assistant Professor at Berklee
College of Music in 2016. Equally at home in the symphony, ballet and
opera worlds, she was Assistant Conductor for Boston Ballet from 2010 to
2016, where she conducted main stage productions on a regular basis. In
2016, she returned to the company as Guest Conductor and made her debut
with The National Ballet of Canada. She had the honour of being the recipient of the 2010 Sir Ernest MacMillan Memorial Foundation Award in orchestral conducting.

In
recent years, Ms. Leclair has had the opportunity to guest conduct
various orchestras both in Canada and the United States, including
Orchestre symphonique du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean, McGill Chamber Orchestra,
Symphony New Hampshire, Syracuse University Symphony Orchestra and New
England Conservatory Chamber and Youth Philharmonic Orchestras. Her
performances have been hailed as “impeccable” (Boston Phoenix),
“ravishing” and of “exemplary pacing and reading” (Hugh Fraser) while
her conducting style is praised for its “verve and precision”,
“confident dynamics and tempos, crisp rhythms, and crystalline phrasing
creat[ing] powerful forward momentum” (Carla DeFord).

Cornell Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Chris Younghoon Kim, present multiple concerts during each academic school year. The membership of the orchestra is formed from students of all colleges and departments across the university-wide community. It is the only non-music major orchestra to win first place among collegiate orchestras the ASCAP award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary music during the 2008-2009 season. It has won the Adventurous awards for 6 years in a row from 2008-2014. For the last seven seasons Cornell Orchestras have been jointly producing the Ithaca International conducting masterclasses with Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra. This performance is a live performance without edits from the College Orchestra Director's Association's National conference in Salt Lake City, UT, in January, 2016.

2nd Place (there was a tie):

Ricardo Averbach Miami U. Symphony Orchestra Oxford OH

Ricardo Averbach

Ricardo Averbach is a native of Brazil. Prior to his coming to Miami University in 2002, he was Music Director of the Echternach Festival Chamber Orchestra in Luxembourg, Music Director of the University of Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble in Philadelphia and Acting Music Director of the Orquestra Sinfônica Municipal de São Paulo in Brazil. After only three years under his leadership at Miami University, the symphony orchestra was selected in one single year and by competitive audition to three major conferences: MENC, ASTA and OMEA. In 2005 he organized the first international tour of the ensemble, creating the Russian-American Orchestra Institute, in collaboration with the St. Petersburg State Conservatory. His discography includes several world premiere recordings, which have sold more than half a million copies around the globe. Dr. Averbach conducts regularly in South and North America, Asia and Europe.

Kevin Sütterlin has recently been appointed Director of Orchestral Activities at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. Prior to that, Sütterlin served as Acting Music Director and Chief Assistant Conductor of the Orchestras and Acting Music Director of Opera at the University of Memphis. He received the school’s Creative Achievement Award and is an awardee of the Hirschmann Foundation scholarship. As Co-Music Director of Sinfonietta Memphis, he strives to present historically-informed performances of Viennese Classics in innovative ways.

He has taught and performed in many countries, including Austria, China, Germany, Italy, Romania, Slovenia, Switzerland. Sütterlin holds a Bachelor in Conducting from the Hochschule Luzern – Musik, Switzerland and a Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Memphis, where he is also currently finishing his DMA in Orchestral Conducting. Kevin is grateful for the continuous guidance of his teachers Pu-Qi Jiang, Mark Ensley, Christoph Rehli, Douglas Bostock, and Michael Stern.

Jeffrey Klefstad is Music Director and conductor of the All University Orchestra at Carnegie Mellon University and assistant conductor for Resonance Works | Pittsburgh. While off the podium, Klefstad is board member, chair of the Community Engagement and Outreach Committee, and member of the artistic committee for Resonance Works | Pittsburgh. Previously Klefstad has been cover conductor for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Akron Symphony Orchestra and The Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh. Additionally he has been Music Director for Undercroft Opera (Pittsburgh). Conducting teachers and mentors have included Diane Wittry, Kenneth Kiesler, Robert McCashin, and Bruce Houglum, respectively. In addition, he has worked with such influential conductors and composers as Kurt Masur, Keith Lockhart, Victor Yampolsky, Steve Reich, Jennifer Higdon, Robert Sierra, Victoria Bond, and Samuel Jones. Additionally, he has been coached by Paul Vermel, Jorge Mester, Peter Jaffee, and Donald Portnoy.

HONORABLE MENTION:Jaemi Loeb Centre College Orchestra Danville KY

Jaemi Loeb

Jaemi Blair Loeb is the Director of Instrumental
Ensembles at Centre College, where she is Music Director of both the
Centre College Orchestra and Wind Ensemble. She is also Principal Guest
Conductor of the Piccadilly Symphony Orchestra in Manchester, England
and the Director of the International Conductors’ Festival - Danville.
Jaemi’s work as a music director is always driven by the goal of
building community within the ensemble and the audience. On the podium,
she balances her musical vision with a collaborative mode of working to
create exciting and emotional performances. To learn more, visit www.jaemiloeb.com.

The American Prize in Conducting—orchestra, 2016-17, community division:

Matthew Cody is a conductor and music educator based in Northeast Iowa. Along with teaching instrumental music in the public school system, Matt is also the founder and conductor of the Oneota Valley Community Orchestra. The OVCO is a full symphonic orchestra that serves communities in Northeast Iowa, Southeast Minnesota, and Southwest Wisconsin.

Matthew graduated from Simpson College with a Bachelor of Music specializing in music education. In 2014 he earned his Master of Music degree from Colorado State University with music education and conducting specialties. Additionally he was invited to be the Conducting Fellow for the 2011 season of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony and a guest conductor for the 2013 Iowa Bandmasters Conference and 2014 Iowa Band Conductors Forum. His principal conducting mentors include: Dr. Robert L Larsen, Founder Des Moines Metro Opera, Jason Weinberger, Music Director, Waterloo Cedar Falls Symphony, Wes Kenney, Music Director, Fort Collins Symphony.

2nd Place:Lois Ferrari Austin Civic Orchestra Austin TX

Lois Ferrari

Lois Ferrari is Professor of Music at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas and has been a member of the faculty since 1993. Dr. Ferrari conducts the SU Orchestra and Wind Ensemble, teaches conducting classes, and serves as host and clinician for the bi-annual SU Conductors' Institute. As ACO Music Director, Dr. Ferrari was named 1st Runner-Up for the 2012 American Prize in Community Orchestra Conducting. In 2014, Dr. Ferrari was honored to be named finalist for the same contest. In 2010 and 2016, Dr. Ferrari conducted all-state ensembles at the Washington State music educators conference.

An enthusiastic champion of new music, Dr. Ferrari founded the bi-annual ACO Composition Contest and is proud to have premiered more than twenty works during the course of her career. One such work was nominated by the Austin Critics Table for Best Symphonic Performance of 2009. In 2012, Ferrari and the ACO were commissioned by composer David Amram to present the Texas premiere of his “Symphonic Variations on a Song by Woody Guthrie.”

A graduate of the Eastman School of Music, where she received a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Conducting, Dr. Ferrari received a full doctoral fellowship and was appointed Assistant Conductor of the renowned Eastman Wind Ensemble. She also earned a Master of Music degree in Conducting and a Bachelor of Music degree with a double major in Performance and Music Education from the Ithaca College School of Music. Her principal teachers were Donald Hunsberger, Rodney Winther, David Effron, and Donald Neuen. http://loisferrari.wix.com/maestra-lois-ferrari

3rd Place:Zachary D. McCoy Balmoral Chamber Orchestra Memphis TN

Zachary D. McCoy

A native of Tennessee, Zachary D. McCoy has studied conducting with Maestro Pu-Qi Jiang and percussion with Drs. Julie Hill and Frank Shaffer. In 2010, McCoy became the founding music director and conductor of the 7AM Marimba Choir. In 2011, he became the founding music director and conductor of the Balmoral Chamber Orchestra, an ensemble dedicated to the charitable service of a variety causes and organizations both domestically as well as internationally. As conductor of BCO, McCoy has premiered a number of compositions and arrangements by composers from around the world. As a soloist, McCoy has been featured as a concerto competition winner under the baton of Maestro Michael Gilbert. McCoy graduated summa cum laude from the University of Memphis with both a Bachelor of Music in performance and a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry. Currently and in addition to serving as the conductor of BCO, McCoy lives in San Francisco with his wife while teaching both music and science. In the fall of 2017, McCoy will attend the University of Tennessee College of Medicine as a medical student.

The American Prize in Conducting—orchestra, 2016-17, youth & school division:

The American Prize winner:Orlando Cela North Carolina Governor's School Orchestra Winston-Salem NC

Orlando Cela

Recently appointed music director of the Arlington Philharmonic (MA), Orlando Cela’s experience includes launching the orchestral department at Ningbo University in China and conducting the inaugural concert of the Ningbo City Symphony Orchestra. In the US, his conducting positions include work with orchestras and choruses at Randolph College (VA), and UMass Dartmouth (MA). Guest conducting credits include the Marquette Symphony Orchestra (MI), the Northern Michigan State University Orchestra (MI), Brandeis New Music Ensemble (MA). He is currently the music director and conductor of the orchestra of the Governor’s School of North Carolina, with which he has performed world and American premieres by composers like Salvatore Sciarrino, Chen Yi, Hector Parra, Rebecca Saunders, Alwynne Pritchard, and many others.

2nd Place:Michael Webster Houston Youth Symphony Houston TX

Michael Webster

A multifaceted musician, Dr. Michael Webster is known as clarinetist, conductor, composer, arranger and educator. Professor of music at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, he has been artistic director of Houston Youth Symphony since 1997. He led the Symphony at the inauguration of Houston Mayor Lee Brown, at Carnegie Hall, and at the 2002 National Youth Orchestra Festival in Sarasota, Florida, as one of six orchestras selected from applicants nationwide. Rarely featuring an orchestra, NPR’s national radio show “From the Top” invited HYS to perform in September 2012.

Dr. Webster served as assistant conductor of the Asian Youth Orchestra under Yehudi Menuhin, music director of the Wellesley Symphony Orchestra, and director of the Michigan Youth Symphony Orchestra. He has held faculty positions in clarinet and conducting at the University of Michigan, New England Conservatory, Boston University, and Eastman School of Music, where he had earned his three degrees.

Winner of the 2015 American Prize in Orchestral Performance and Runner-up for the American Prize in Conducting, Australian conductor Carolyn Watson is Director of Orchestral Studies at Texas State University. From 2013-15 she held the position of Conductor of the Interlochen Arts Academy Orchestra, having also conducted the World Youth Symphony Orchestra and Detroit Symphony Youth Orchestra. Prior to moving to the US Carolyn enjoyed a successful tenure as the inaugural Conductor-in-Residence at Sydney's Conservatorium High School from 2011-2013. A Fellow of the American Academy of Conducting at the Aspen Music Festival, Carolyn was a major prizewinner at the 2012 Emmerich Kálmán International Operetta Conducting Competition in Budapest. She is the recipient of the Brian Stacey Award for Emerging Australian Conductors, Charles Mackerras Conducting Prize, Nelly Apt Scholarship and Opera Foundation Australia’s Bayreuth Opera Award and Berlin New Music Opera Award. Dr. Watson holds a PhD in Performance (Conducting) from the University of Sydney where the subject of her doctoral thesis was Gesture as Communication: The Art of Carlos Kleiber. www.carolyn-watson.com

Ryan Murray’s dynamic conducting, engaging persona and deeply held passion for the arts have allowed him to steadily build a robust career since his professional debut at the age of just 22. Ryan was a winner of the Vienna Philharmonic’s Ansbacher Fellowship for Young Conductors and previously studied at the Eastman School of Music's Summer Conducting Institute featuring the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra; he has participated in the Aurora Conducting Seminar with Kurt Masur, as well as the Lucerne Festival Academy Conducting Masterclass. Ryan is currently the Music Director of Townsend Opera, the Associate Conductor for the Modesto Symphony Orchestra, Music Director for the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra and Resident Conductor of the Music in the Mountains Summer Festival. Ryan previously served as a Conductor for the BASOTI, and the Opera Academy of California. Visit www.ryanjmurray.com for news and upcoming engagements.